| DATE: 2007-11-01 |
Convicts at Maafushi jail on jails roof top. -- Haveeru file Photo
Island Chief Ali Naseer told Haveeru that two convicts robbed 9 homes last Friday and Saturday nights. Two more homes were robbed Tuesday night as well, he said. Moreover, mobile phones were stolen from a local residence, Sunshine, located near the prison.
“According to the guards two men escaped on Tuesday night. They searched the island for them as well. They said they didn’t know how the convicts got back in. In my opinion people are escaping because they can’t look after the jail,” the Island Chief said.
A woman from Sunshine house told Haveeru that four mobile phones were stolen from the house in a pre-dawn raid. Moreover, this is the second time that convicts have stolen from the house.
“Convicts had stolen from this house about six months ago, too. I woke up Tuesday night to the sound of burglars in the house. They had run off with four mobile phones by the time I got out. The house was covered in grimy sand. The apples in the fridge had been eaten as well. A urinated bottle was kept on the kitchen table. We are starting to face the nuisance of convicts again. There is no solution to this. What are we to do?” the resident of Sunshine house told Haveeru. “There is no one to look into this. No one who cares. Once again the terror has started. We didn’t think homes would be robbed when some shops were burglarized recently.”
According to the woman, she heard from a prison guard that the two thieves re-entered the prison at about 5.15am after tearing through a fence by the women’s quarters.
“The DPRS (Department of Penitentiary and Rehabilitation Services) staff were looking for them even then. I would say that if they were looking after the jail properly at that time they would not have been able to break in through a fence. Isn’t this happening because they can’t look after the jail?” she asked.
Haveeru was unable to get an official response from the Penitentiary Department.
Escaped convicts raided the Island Office and burglarized 9 guest shops last Friday and Saturday nights. The two thieves were caught trying to board a ferry to Male’ from nearby Guraidhoo. The convicts had stolen a small dinghy to reach the island. The dinghy has not been recovered.
According to the Island Chief, Police arrived in the island after the burglaries during the weekend and have taken fingerprints from the convicts at the prison.
No comments:
Post a Comment